Graduation Day
by tiger002
Summary: Cody thinks about his life and uncertainty during his graduation.
1. Chapter 1: High School

A/N: A short story that shows Cody's thoughts of leaving high school and moving on. Published on the day of my graduation. Enjoy

I can't believe all this hard work is finally paying off. It's finally over. Twelve years of school, coming to an end, it seems so impossible. The main focus of my life, everything I have worked for, now over. So, where do I go from here?

I mean, it should be simple. Collage for sure, to further my education, but even that holds so many different options. I have always loved math and the beauty of numbers just seems so much fun. Yes, it may seem crazy to some, but to me, math is beauty. How by logic, one can carve away the complexities to find simplicity. Hard to describe, but alas, it doesn't matter now.

Beyond here where do I go? In collage, there are so many types of math and science. There is engineering, teaching math, pure math, so many different choices. Engineering could be a good choice with the combination of math and science together. Those are my two favorite subjects. However, is this something I want to do the rest of my life? Am I good enough for it? None will deny I am better than most, but is that good enough? I have seen problems where even though I should know what to do, I have no idea. What if that is what engineering will be like?

Maybe I could go and be a math teacher. I would be able to help others learn the subject, but do I really want to spend my whole life in school? Sure I always wanted to be able to help people with what I do, but isn't there something more I could do?

Would obtaining a math degree make sense? I could then go from there, but then four years from now I would be in the same spot I am now. Then what? And really, how can someone make a living by just knowing everything about numbers?

I don't know. Everyone seems to know exactly what they want to do. Nate and Chris are going into computer science, Stephen into biological engineering and everyone else seems to know exactly where they want their life to go. Even Zack has decided to go to community collage for a couple years. Then why don't I know for sure? So many things would be good, but I don't want something just good. Nothing really seems to stick out to me as something that fits me perfectly. I have all of these talents, and I don't want to waste them, but I just don't know.

All my life people say how proud of me they are. Even with my grades, collage is still expensive, and I don't want to spend all that money for nothing. And even with an education, who is to say I will be able to find a job when I get out. If the economy is still bad, then I could be in debt and not be able to find a job.

Well for now, I just have to go with my decision and have faith it will either work out, or I will find my true calling along the way. For now, a duel major in computer science and math. This looks like it will be a good fit for me and something I could enjoy doing, but I don't want to shut any doors yet. I don't know the future, but it looks like the best choice, I hope.

A slight nudge called me out of my state of thought. I looked over to Zack sitting beside me. "It's almost time."

"Michel Lenex," the school board called as he went up to get his diploma. It was only a few more names then it would be my turn. After that moment, my life would change forever. My heart feels like its going to jump out of my chest.

"Cody Martin." I rise out of my seat and proceed to the stage. I shake the board members hand and receive my diploma. I begin the walk down the stairs back to my seat. Then I hear it. The entire crowd is cheering for me, but one section rises above the rest. I look up to see none other than my parents and family. They aren't clapping for my grades or that I've been accepted into a good collage. They are clapping for me. I may not know where my life will hold but I know my parents will always be there. My friends don't like me because of grades or anything like that, but because of who I am. Then there is Zack. We may be going off in different directions, but we will always be brothers. So many things have changed in my twelve years of school. I wonder, twelve years from now, what else will have changed.


	2. Chapter 2: College

**A/N: Written on the day of my college graduation**

'_I am Rosemary's grand[son]__  
The spitting image of my father__  
And when the day is done__  
My momma's still my biggest fan__  
Sometimes I'm clueless and I'm clumsy__  
But I've got friends who love me__  
And they know just where I stand__  
It's all a part of me__  
And that's who I am'_

**Chapter 2: College**

Four Years.

A lot can change in four years.

Four years ago, I was walking across an isle and was handed a piece of paper commemorating my accomplishments.

Four years ago I shook hands with the head of the school among with hundreds of my peers.

Four years ago, a chapter of life closed while another new one opened wild with uncertainty.

All those things happened again today.

In a different place, surrounded by different people.

Though in reality, there was one who was here dressed in the gowns of graduation both then and now.

A college graduate…that's who I am now.

Can you believe it?

It still seems surreal to me.

Four years ago, who was I?

Back then I didn't know what I should do with my life, picked a couple majors and hoped for the best.

Today I graduated with a degree of computer science…though a path I thought to change more than once.

Back then I didn't know what kind of job I wanted.

Now I have a job working for the government, aiding them in analyzing the complexities of the human mind.

I look out over the campus one more time from my dorm room. I see the cafeteria where the food was always an adventure and where the company was always better than the cuisine. I see the engineering building where I spent a number of hours fighting a computer program to work the way I wanted it to. I see the dorm I lived in freshman year, where the rooms were so small I left a footprint on the ceiling my first night here.

I think back, of how I've grown.

Back then, I thought I was ready, thought I was good enough for what they'd throw at me.

I found that A's don't always come easily.

Back then, I thought I was a good person, one who's few faults were more than made up for by righteousness.

Now I see how far I could fall, how wicked I could become underneath the holy mask I wear.

I have been hurt and hurt others. I have lied and been lied to. I can see now the wickedness of my own heart.

I'm not perfect.

I'm human.

I think of my friends, just as fallen as me, but on the same path. The laughs we could share at a joke we've heard one too many times. The absurd questions and the even more absurd answers. The moments we could share fighting against the challenge of a school project, and the victory when everything fell together.

But it wasn't just all fun and laughter.

There were times when we came together for someone in need. Not out of an obligation but wanting to see another smile. There were the times where we had questions without simple answers. Where our answers and truth may not be the same. We challenged each other, challenged ourselves.

That's what college is about.

Growing in mind and spirit.

Seeing a world bigger than just one person. A world that doesn't always make sense. A world where answers aren't so clear cut.

Collage is about opening minds to options you may have not yet considered. It's about questioning traditions that seemed to be just a given. It's about probing what you think, until you find the kernel of truth that gives shape to a worldview.

An unexamined life is not worth living, an old philosopher said.

And an unexamined faith is not worth believing.

These past years I've searched through these questions and answers.

At the core, my faith is still the same, my beliefs still mostly unchanged. But beneath a simple answer or statement, I see and understand the truth that supports it.

Not to say I know everything of course.

There's a lot I still have to learn, and far more I'll never understand. But the edge of knowledge, where the knowable and the mystery intersect, that is the knowledge I crave the most.

So I guess it shouldn't surprise you that my next step is graduate school to learn even more. Maybe I shouldn't be, but I have to admit I'm a bit nervous about it. Seeing the things the students are working on, it just seems so overwhelming. But I've felt like that before. And just look at me now.

Four years ago, I had no idea what I'd be doing with this major.

Heck…a year ago I didn't even know.

Even now, I have a vague idea but nothing more.

So as I pack these last few things, I'm reminded once again of everyone I met here, everyone I got to know and the incredible journey we shared.

"Cody, you ready?"

"Almost," I say putting my laptop in its bag, the room once overflowing with my roommate's stuff now just like the day we moved in.

"You're gonna get all sentimental again, aren't you?"

I give him a brief smile. "It wouldn't be me if I didn't."

I grab my laptop case and I close the door behind us, for the last time. Going down the familiar stairs and exiting the building, I see the cars have dwindled, many students already on their way home or wherever their destination is for the summer. Putting my laptop in the back where a spot was just barely left for it, I get in the car, seeing the diploma already framed sitting in the passenger seat. Zack gets in the car and takes hold of it as I pull out of the parking space.

"This is pretty cool."

"You'll get one soon too."

"Yeah, just a few more months. Can't believe my little brother is getting his diploma before me."

"That's what happens when you go after it right away."

He places the diploma gently in the place between the seats.

When I look back on these four years, what should I see?

I could see the diploma, the proof that I made it this far.

I can see my GPA, graduating top of my major, and graduating with honor.

I can look to my book of poetry published for the world to behold.

I can look back on the friendships forged both here and across the world.

I can remember my sin, the words I never said and the words I wish never left my heart.

I can remember my failures, the times when I fell through no other fault but my own.

I can remember the faithful love that kept me going through it all.

Time isn't measured so easily.

Achievements rarely tell the whole story.

So I let a tear fall as this chapter comes to a close, as the school I made my home these four years fades into the horizon.

But a new chapter opens up tomorrow. New characters, new plots, new struggles, for sure.

Though I know some old friends will be with me along the way.

And I truly believe the best is yet to come.

'_I'm a saint and I'm a sinner__  
I'm a loser, I'm a winner__  
I'm am steady and unstable__  
I am young but I am able'_

Who I Am, Jessica Andrews

**A/N: **I definitely wrote a lot of myself into Cody here, but I hope it could still come across as him being in character. I'm not sure how well the song fits the tone of the fic, but I've wanted to use this song because of how well it fits me for a long time. Lastly, the part about a book of poetry was true for me.

I have recently published a book of poetry, available on Amazon for Kindle here: www . amazon Journey-ebook/dp/B00CJPI0AG/ and also available as a physical book from CreateSpace here: www . createspace 4252285. As a thank you for reading my stories, if you buy it from CreateSpace, you can enter discount code: WQVN3SY4 to get 2 dollars off.

And yes...I did spell college wrong...thank you Angie...I never said I had a degree in English.


End file.
